The Screams of the Heart
by Bishie no Miko
Summary: A face-off between mortal enemies always has its twists. Gene vs. Ron McDougal is more than just a one-on-one but a battle for all of them, in ways they... or you... could never predict. PG-13 for naughty langage, bloodiness, and *lots* of mental/physica
1. The Power of Hatred

DISCLAIMER: Outlaw Star ain't mine.   
  
Okay people, I've only seen up to yesterday's episode, and I'm sure I'm going against fact and all that crap that everyone hates (including myself). Odds are McDougal and Gene square off in the series in a very, VERY different fashion. But I didn't want to study up on the series because I like not knowing what's going to happen (I, uh, kinda know everything already in all the other anime, so Outlaw Star's my last chance to be surprised).   
  
Anycrap, I felt like torturing my beloved Gene.   
And I like writing battles, and I felt like writing down what I think the McDougal vs. Gene fight should be like.   
And I was bored.   
And I'm posting it because I need to post stuff.  
Enjoy the next few minutes of constant random Angst and Torture!  
Oh yeah, and you all have permission to deal with my spelling, got it? Gooood. Glad to hear it. ^_^=  
  
  
THE SCREAMS OF THE HEART  
  
  
"Perhaps I haven't made myself clear," McDougal said in a bored, fatigued tone as he walked towards his prey. With a movement too fast to be followed by anyone in Gene Starwind's condition, he slammed his boot at full force against his forehead. Gene yelled in pain as his body flung backwards through the air from the powerful kick. He landed hard on his back, knocking the breath out of his lungs and slamming his head violently against the ground. Once the dust settled, he was completely still.  
  
"No! Gene!!!" Jim screamed.  
  
  
Gene had experienced a polite run-in with the McDougal brothers earlier in the docking zone where the Outlaw Star currently resided: an assumed-dead, new and improved Harry had grabbed Melfina by the stomach and pressed a gun to her temple (mumbling apologies), while the elder pointed his gun at Gene's forehead. He said he had been hired to kill him, and he wanted a good fight, which is why he didn't shoot him at that instant. Jim, Aisha, and Suzuka all leapt to help, but Gene had glared at them with a look completely foreign even to Jim, saying that this was his fight, and if anyone interfered, he would kill them himself. Startled they submitted, and Gene accepted the terms. He had left with McDougal to fight in the designated area: an uneven field of wild grasses, rocks, dirt, and a few scattered trees. The others followed, the android McDougal clutching Melfina by the arm.  
  
The fight had not gone well. Gene had been able to hold his own for the first minute or so of the fight, but McDougal had gained the upper hand as twilight began to melt away in the darkness.  
  
Now shot, bruised, bleeding, and worn, Gene lay on the ground, completely still.  
  
"Gene! Snap out of it, he's coming!!" Jim hollered, ignoring the threats from Harry.  
  
Eventually, Gene's body heaved, and he concentrated on breathing and keeping his heart going as McDougal neared him. In. Out. In. Out. McDougal now towered over his body, but his eyes were unable to reach him; his head weighed too much to move it. At the tone of his voice, he twisted his face into a pained snarl of contempt. McDougal sneered.  
  
"You misunderstand me. You still seem to believe I'm here for only personal reasons. I'll remind you again Gene, this is a job as much as it's personal. I'm not one to ask questions when that much money is virtually forced into my hands."  
  
Gene almost had his bearings. **Keep talking, you bastard...keep thinking I'm finished...**  
  
He did. "I must admit, I am a bit curious why you're so dangerous in so many powerful eyes. You're not powerful by yourself at all. Apparently the only reason you survived the attack six years ago was dumb luck. And, of course, your father was there to save you."  
  
Gene's eyes widened. McDougal smiled.  
  
"Oh, yes, I remember completely. All the details. A man doesn't forget getting the most money he's ever received in his lifetime to kill a fourteen-year-old. I still don't know how you managed to slip by me."   
  
Gene couldn't believe what he was hearing. His mind raced. **What... It's not possible! He was hired to kill me? But... why... I hadn't even done anything yet, and...  
  
It was for me... Dad...  
  
Because of me...**  
  
He was continuing... "It seems it was a good thing in the long run; two payments for one job"... But Gene couldn't quite hear. **Why? Why did it happen?! I thought this was all for the Outlaw Star! And the Galactic Layline! Why six years ago!? My father is dead now, and for WHAT?! Some fucking destiny shit?  
  
I don't buy it!  
  
I won't!**  
  
McDougal sighed, annoyed. "Still, what a waste of my time. Your luck has run out, and your father can't save you this time. Then again, he wasn't a challenge six years ago... I doubt he'd be much of an obstacle now."  
  
Suddenly, Gene was unable to see. He couldn't think, either. But this wasn't unconsciousness. It was... lightning. Surging through his body...  
  
His arm found his gun at his waist and fired it at McDougal's stomach within a tenth of a second. The bullets were blocked, McDougal's face expressing mild surprise from Gene's sudden movement... but the spin kick was completely unexpected. It hit him in the chest with perfect contact, and he flew backwards without control for yards. But he caught himself quickly and performed a backflip to land on the ground in a catlike stance, clutching his chest.   
  
"Brother!" Harry yelled in surprise, clutching Melfina tighter, angered by her yelp of relief.   
  
Gene rose, his dark eyes irradiating an uncontrollable need for revenge. He flung his face to the sky and blindly let loose a feral, echoing scream of hatred.   
  
"H... he's acting like... like a transformed Ctarl-Ctarl or something," Aisha said, stunned. "What happened?"  
  
"He's running on rage alone," Suzuka said softly. "That kind of hatred... I never suspected Gene could ever hold something like that in his heart. Jim, did..."  
  
She glanced at Jim, and trailed off; the boy was staring at Gene, shocked and confused. Aisha noticed.  
  
"Jim, you all right?" she asked.  
  
**Why?** He thought. **Why, Gene? Every time McDougal comes up, you act like another person. Now this.  
  
**What are you keeping from me?**  
  
********  
  
Cliffhanger ) Mwahahaa, Gene's gonna open up a can o' whoop-ass. Can you blame him? Oish... r/r 


	2. More Than His Life Alone

McDougal smiled slightly. "Quite an adrenalin. And here I thought that leg had been taken out," he mumbled to himself as he eyed the bullet holes trailing up Gene's left leg, drenching the entire limb red.  
  
"LIAR!!" Gene screamed, his muscles tense, his fists clenched so tightly blood trailed over his knuckles and fell to the ground from wounds made by his fingernails piercing his flesh. "I'VE HAD ENOUGH!!"  
  
"Liar?" McDougal repeated coolly, questioningly. "Why would I lie?"  
  
"SHUT UP! I DON'T BUY IT! I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOUR SHIT!" He took a deep breath, and positioned himself. "I'll kill you, right now! You'll pay for everything! EVERYTHING!!"  
  
He charged, and McDougal braced himself; that kick had hurt, and he had no desire to let his guard down again. Gene launched his fist at McDougal's face, which he caught... Gene expected that, and before McDougal could react, he brought his knee up at full force into his groin. McDougal's eyes stretched and he doubled over, and Gene punched across his face as hard as he could. McDougal stumbled and slammed into the ground, and Gene glared down at him, breathing hard and bleeding badly. His left leg shuddered violently to remind him of the eleven bullets that rested in his flesh, and he shifted his weight to his right, which had only one. His eyes fell out of focus for a moment, but snapped back when McDougal groaned and rose slowly.   
  
"Not bad," he coughed, finally revealing the faintest sign of anger. "And here I thought you didn't have anything left in you."  
  
"I'm a bad person to underestimate," Gene growled, exited from finally getting a sort of rise out of him. He caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of his eye, and he barely moved fast enough to dodge the knife that went for him. It cut him along his side causing a slight yell of pain, but at least it hadn't pierced into his stomach like intended. Gene leapt back and pulled out a knife of his own, and barely had time to raise the blade to block another stab, this one aimed for his head. The sparks lit up in the past-sunset darkness, illuminating Gene's straining face and McDougal's attacking one. He pushed down with all his force, but Gene held on, determined not to give in, even when the tip of the attacking knife pressed against the skin in-between his eyes, drawing the slightest amount of blood.   
  
Eventually both men fell back... but only Gene collapsed to his knees in exhaustion. His desperate heaving could be seen by all even in the dim light, while his opponent stood up straight, taking steady, deep breaths. Gene's painful coughing echoed against the night, and his choking on his blood was loud enough for the others to hear.   
  
Jim sank to his knees. It didn't matter how much Gene hated McDougal... McDougal had energy to spare to keep going, and Gene had nothing left.  
  
McDougal knew it, too. He walked towards Gene, menacing, and almost laughed when Gene tried to rise but sank again, unable to stand. **Interesting,** he thought. **Able to hurt me like that in his condition.**  
  
"It's over. Whatever energy you had before, It's gone now."  
  
Gene started a low growl, then yelled out in anger and frustration. He knew it was hopeless, but he refused to surrender!  
  
"Hah, Gene Starwind doesn't go down that easily!" he hollered with a half-smile, and began to reach for his Castor. He hadn't pulled it out at all during the fight since he knew McDougal would counter it easily, but it didn't matter now.   
  
"Oh no? Well, how about them?" McDougal asked, gesturing to where Jim and the others stood.  
  
Gene blinked. McDougal only did what was in his contracts. Even if he was acting out of something personal for what Gene did to Harry, he would get his revenge merely by sticking to his contract this time. What was he getting at?  
  
Gene shrugged. "They'd kick your ass. Take you any day."  
  
"Oh?" McDougal smiled. "What about Melfina?"  
  
Gene frowned. "What about her?"  
  
The expression on McDougal's face looked amused. "Would she go down easily?"  
  
Gene did not like this. "What the hell are you getting at, McDougal?"  
  
"Not only am I supposed to kill you," McDougal informed him, "But I'm also supposed to completely destroy the Outlaw Star. Melfina... included."  
  
"W... what?!" Gene growled. "I won't let you!"  
  
"You really have no choice. It was a specific request to destroy the Outlaw Star and Melfina before I kill you... in front of your eyes. To quote my employer, 'Make sure he feels as much guilt, pain, and helplessness as possible.' You've got passionate enemies, boy."  
  
Gene frowned. **I thought Harry liked Melfina,** he thought... but smiled confidently after a moment. "It won't be easy. Harry may think he's all man over there, but Suzuka and Aisha have everything under control. They can kill him whenever they want, and then they'll kill you."  
  
"Oh really?" He asked, amused, and he rose his arm to address a watch, pushing a button. At that instant, screams invaded Gene's mind.   
  
"W... what?!" he shouted, panicked, and looked over to see Aisha, Suzuka, and Jim all fall to the ground, groaning in pain, slipping into unconsciousness.  
  
"Jim! Aisha! Suzuka! You bastard, what did you do to them!?" He hollered, pulling out his Castor. But as soon as he had it in his hands ready to fire, McDougal grabbed his wrist and held firmly onto it. Gene thought his hand was going to snap off.   
  
"Electric shock. I don't need to explain how I went about it to a boy who's already dead, though. Don't worry, they're no concern of mine any more. The job is to kill you, your ship, and the android. Harry! Come over here, and bring Melfina." And with that, he pulled the Castor out of Gene's hand, flung it aside far out of his reach, and adjusted his hold to directly between Gene's wrist and elbow. His face stone, he shoved him down towards the ground with his full strength, while pulling the limb towards him at an angle. Gene screamed as the bone snapped, his entire arm surging with unbelievable pain. McDougal expressionlessly shoved him down onto his back against the bloodstained grass, leaving him to find out for himself how to deal with this new source of pain among many.  
  
Harry came with Melfina, who looked on the verge of bursting into tears at the sight of everyone collapsing... and the sight of Gene, who looked like he should have died of blood loss alone a long time ago. She struggled in Harry's arms, yelling and kicking and screaming the whole way, but he held tightly onto her.   
  
"No! Let go of me! Gene!" she screamed.   
  
"Shut up, Melfina! I told you to forget about him! Look, he's as good as dead!" Harry hissed. Once they were next to McDougal, Harry smiled pure satisfaction from seeing Gene glare at him with such contempt.  
  
"Well, Gene Starwind, looks like I win! You'll be dead, and Melfina will belong to me forever!" Harry grinned, holding her close against him, Melfina pushing away while groaning desperate objections and Gene's name.  
  
Gene studied him, when realization struck him. "Aw, geez, McDougal, you're a bastard. And I thought you cared about your brother."  
  
"Well, he wouldn't have come if I told him," McDougal stated, sounding legitimately regretful. "Harry, give the girl to me."  
  
"Why?" He growled. "I want you to kill him, now! Prove to her that he's weak, and that only I can..."  
  
"Harry, you moron," Gene groaned. "He's gonna kill her."  
  
"What? ...Kill her?" He repeated, incredulous. "Like I'll believe you."  
  
"Ask your brother here."  
  
Harry became worried. "Hey, he's bluffing, right? You said we were gonna kill Starwind! And we're about to, right!? And I can have Melfina!"   
  
He turned to his younger brother sadly. "No, Harry."   
  
He froze at his brother's words.   
  
"We also have to destroy the Outlaw Star, and Melfina. Our employer wants them all gone. I thought we could lie and you could keep Melfina, but she's got a tracer in her. There would be no way to hide her."  
  
Harry was shocked. His eyes widened and his whole body fell into a state of disbelief.   
  
Melfina took this to her advantage, and with all her power she jammed her elbow into Harry's stomach. With him doubled over, she then used all her strength to pull away from him.  
  
"Melfina!" Harry yelled, grabbing for her as she escaped, but she slipped out of his grasp and ran what seemed to be forever. He was so close... she had to get to him... time froze as she fled towards his crippled figure.  
  
"Gene...!"  
  
She collapsed alongside him and held his body in her arms, not caring about the McDougal brothers, not caring about anything. She had to support him, get him off that arm, or he'd pass out from the pain. Gene winced while she lifted him, and not opening his eyes, begged her to leave.  
  
"Mel... you get out of here, now! They'll kill you..." his voice cut off as a sudden wave of pain flowed through his body, making him shudder. This made her hold him even closer.  
  
"No, I'm not leaving you! I'll never leave you, Gene!"  
  
His eyes snapped open, and he stared at her. Melfina's shimmering black hair rustled slightly in a soft wind, and her light skin looked even paler in the moonlight. Her face was contorted in fear, her brown eyes boring into his own, filled with tears and something else...   
  
She flung her arms around his shoulders in an embrace, silently crying. And Gene Starwind's eyes widened as he listened to her plea softly into his ear, her soft lips brushing lightly against his coarse scars.  
  
"I'll never leave you. Don't make me... I'll stay here with you, all the way to the end. I don't want to stay alive if you die. I don't want to live an instant without you living near me. Don't make me leave you here, Gene. I'll stay with you forever. Forever..."  
  
"M... Mel... I..." Gene stammered. He stared straight ahead of him at the ground, his eyes not focusing. The McDougal brothers were right there, but they made no move... he didn't care why not. They both seemed so far away now...  
  
"Forever..."  
  
She suddenly gasped as McDougal grabbed her from behind, pulling her away from Gene. He snapped back into reality in panic.  
  
"Melfina! Run, please!"  
  
She struggled, but he was too strong. He held her just out of Gene's reach, his outstretched arm just not long enough to grasp Melfina's hand.  
  
"Gene!"  
  
"You see, Harry? She's blindly devoted to Gene," McDougal sighed, pitying his brother. "You've got to get over her. Starwind has to pay, and Melfina must die to make that possible. There is no other way."  
  
Harry was silent.  
  
"McDougal! Let her go! She can find the tracer in the ship, she can get it out! Leave her alone!" Gene hollered, desperate.  
  
He said nothing. Gene changed tactics, and focused his attention on Harry.  
  
"Harry! You actually think you have a right to claim you care about Melfina when you're just going to stand there?! What kind of man are you?!"  
  
Harry hung his head, and said nothing.  
  
Gene snarled. "Coward! You're a fucking coward! A spineless, gutless, self-serving..."  
  
He was interrupted by an abrupt kick to his throat. "Shut up," McDougal growled at his fallen figure. He thought for a moment, watching Gene.   
  
He then flung Melfina onto his sprawled body. She yelled in surprise, and once she found her bearings again she rose to shake Gene's nearly unconscious body.   
  
"Gene! Gene, are you all right?" She yelled in a shrill, panicked tone. He groaned in reply. McDougal turned to face McDougal.  
  
"Harry... you see? It will bring you nothing but pain to love Melfina."  
  
Harry looked up, his face showing that very pain. "But... brother..."  
  
"I'm sorry." He paused. "But Starwind needs to pay."  
  
Harry fell silent again. McDougal frowned.  
  
"You may want to leave. This might be too painful for you to watch."  
  
*********  
  
Uh oh. Things not looking too good for... um... everyone :p. R/R 


	3. The Destroyer of Dreams

After waiting for a while to make sure Harry had finally chosen not to leave, he pulled out a gun resembling a rifle. Melfina gasped upon seeing it. It was familiar...  
  
  
******************************************  
  
"Hey, Gene! You've got mail!" Jim's voice echoed in Starwind and Hawking Enterprises.  
  
"All riiiiight!" Gene hollered as he jumped down the stairs and ran to the boy, suddenly full of energy. He snatched a magazine from Jim eagerly and flung the fist that held it into the air in triumph, grinning from ear to ear.  
  
"YES! Thanks, buddy!" He hollered, ruffling Jim's hair. And with that, he bound up the stairs again to plop down on his bead and read the 'zine, nearly knocking Aisha off the railway.  
  
"Heeey! Watch where you're going, Gene! Jim, what's gotten into him?" she whined.  
  
Jim seemed used to this. "Aw, he's been waiting for this issue for a while. That's his magazine that has all sorts of random info on old weapons and junk. It's pretty cool, I like it myself." He sighed. "There's a big article covering castors this month, and Gene's a castor freak. It's natural."  
  
"Hmph," Aisha growled. "Boys and their toys."  
  
"Hey, he's gotta be enthusiastic about *something*, he can't be 100% lazy-ass about everything in this world," Jim replied.  
  
"I heard that," Gene yelled from his bed.   
  
Melfina, who had grown curious about what on earth could have Gene so exited, wandered upstairs and addressed him as he flipped through the pages.   
  
"Um...may I sit down?"  
  
"Sure, go ahead," he automatically replied. She sat down next to him.  
  
"What are you reading?"  
  
"The only worthwhile weapons magazine in the universe. Check this out."  
  
Curious, she leaned over to look over his shoulder, and her eyes widened at the pages filled with all sorts of gadgets and devices designed for fighting.  
  
"They've got all the new models along with the best classics, and every once and a while they throw in chronicles and studies on stuff that's been banned." He glanced to his side at Melfina's wide eyes, and he grinned, a thought striking him. He flipped a few pages and pointed to a knife.  
  
"This knife here, it splits into four knives that rotate once it's pierced through flesh. You stab into the stomach and it completely tears up everything inside."  
  
"Goodness," she gasped.  
  
"And these custom bullets," he said, flipping some more pages, "Imbed themselves into the target and explode after three seconds. The explosives they're loaded with can make a 10,000 kilogram block disintegrate into nothing."  
  
Her eyes widened even more, and Gene was inspired. He had the perfect coup de grace...  
  
"And that one there," Gene said with a genuinely evil look now after flipping backwards a little, "...That's been banned for years." His finger landed on a crude looking gun, which would have looked like a normal rifle had it not been for the long, harpoon-like cone sticking out of the barrel. Gene pointed to the enlargement of the cone, calling it to Melfina's attention. The whole thing seemed to be crudely made by twisting pieces of jagged metal together, pointing their razor ends in every direction possible, and giving the whole mess a general harpoon shape with a painfully sharp tip.  
  
"That's a Scrappler, an old custom torture device created in the early Space Wars designed for getting the most reluctant hostages to talk. You jab it into uncomfortable places," he said, poking Melfina's shoulder with his finger, causing her to jump and stare at him, "...and you twist it around for even more rewarding results. The gun is to make it go in deeper."  
  
He turned his menacing face so it looked right at Melfina's. "The jagged metal makes it impossible to pull out without dragging out a whole mess of dripping, bloody muscle and flesh with it... so each and every person who DOES try to take it out winds up bleeding slowly, violently, and painfully to DEATH."  
  
Melfina looked pale now, and neither Gene's wicked grin nor his tone of voice helped. Aisha, who had been listening, spoke up.  
  
"Geez, that sounds like it had every reason to be banned! That's gotta hurt," she whimpered.  
  
Gene nodded solemnly. "Anyone who's survived it has to keep it in them for the rest of their lives, or else they'll die that slow and painful DEATH! So you can always recognize the survivors of Scrappler attacks, 'cause they're walking around with huge metal spears stickin' out of their bodies!"  
  
He took one look at Melfina's horrified face and promptly fell into a hysterical fit of laughter. This made her even more nervous, but she *really* jumped when a frying pan came out of nowhere and slammed against Gene's head. Jim rolled his eyes as Gene slowly recovered from the blow, groaning and cursing.  
  
"Now that you've convinced Mel that you're a complete psychopath, how about ordering those castor shells?" Jim yelled, annoyed.  
  
"Oooww! Dammit Jim, that hurt!" he whined.  
  
"Order the shells," he repeated, "Before they run out. This is the cheapest way to get 'em."   
  
"All right, all right!" Gene said, annoyed, and he jumped off his bead and leaped over the banister, taking the magazine with him to the phone to look up the number. Jim groaned and turned his attention towards Melfina.  
  
"He's just being stupid. It's a pretty nasty weapon, all right, but he's overdoing it to freak you out. Just ignore him."  
  
Mel gave a small smile and shook her head. "It's all right. He was just trying to scare me?"  
  
"Sure was," Aisha growled. "I'll never get used to that guy's random evil streak. When's he gonna grow up?"  
  
"Maybe I should just kill the subscription," Jim suggested.  
  
"Maybe I should just kill you!" Gene's voice was heard. The three laughed.  
  
****************************************************  
  
Melfina stared at the Scrappler, now aimed in her direction. She looked at McDougal, pleading, but he showed no emotion. He only glanced in Gene's direction, and waited for the outlaw to get a full view of the weapon aimed for Melfina's chest.   
  
And with that, he prepared to fire.  
  
"Mel... run!..." Gene coughed. But he knew it was hopeless.  
  
Melfina closed her eyes.  
  
A shot echoed in her mind.   
  
And a scream of agony filled the air.  
  
Was it her own?  
  
Wait...  
  
Her eyes snapped open as a violent wind whipped around her body, caused by shockwaves from a nearby explosion. Once the wind had died down, she took the scene in.  
  
Jim Hawking stood nearby, shaking slightly, the Castor that had been cast aside held tightly in his hands. Aisha was near him; she had taken him to the gun.  
  
And Harry McDougal was dying.  
  
***********  
  
Cliffhangers... are evil. ) But so am I, so I don't care. r/r, as usual 


	4. Final Wish

"Bro... ther..." He managed before sinking to the ground. McDougal could only stand, stunned.   
  
He had taken a blast meant for him.  
  
"Dammit... I missed," Jim growled. "No more... shells left..." He collapsed, and Aisha barely caught him.  
  
"Jim! Slow down, you're gonna be okay..."  
  
Gene, Melfina, and McDougal stared at the dying android. He by all rights should have died instantly. But he refused to leave without saying something first...  
  
"Mel... fina..."  
  
She gasped and rose to her feet at her name, Gene slowly rising after her. Harry smiled slightly at her... it was the most heartfelt smile he had ever given in his life. He was glad he was able to give one like that.  
  
"I... I did love you... I always... will... really love you..."  
  
Melfina gasped, tears welling in her eyes.  
  
"P... please don't... hate me..."  
  
"N... no, I don't hate you!" she cried. "I never hated you! I never will!"  
  
Harry sighed, taking everything in.   
  
He had never been so happy.  
  
********  
  
...  



	5. The Price of Revenge

McDougal stared down at his brother, and his eyes widened.  
  
"Harry..."  
  
Melfina choked a sob as silent tears glided down her cheeks. She turned away and buried her face into Gene's blood-sodden chest, trying to drown everything out.   
  
Gene stood, unmoving and silent, still looking at Harry's lifeless body. He was without a doubt glad Harry was dead... but eventually, slowly, he rose his good arm to wrap it around Melfina for comfort. She was crying for him, and he had never seen her cry before...  
  
But there was little time to dwell on the death, as they soon heard the click of a gun. Melfina turned to find Ron McDougal aiming for her heart.  
  
"McDougal! What are you thinking?!" Gene growled. "You'd kill the only person your brother ever loved?!"  
  
"I'd kill anyone and anything that would hurt you, Gene Starwind, the only person my brother ever truly hated," he growled, furious. His eyes weakened slightly, and he added in a much softer tone, "Besides... wherever cyborgs go, perhaps Harry can find Melfina there."  
  
"McDougal, for the love of god, leave her alone! Haven't you done enough to satisfy your boss?!" Gene cried.  
  
He shook his head. "No. It will never be enough. Once I've killed you, I'll wish I had done more. Melfina..." he said in a different voice. "I regret this. But a contract is a contract... and it's your own fault for being involved with Gene Starwind."  
  
She clenched her eyes. Nothing would stop him this time.  
  
"Goodbye!" he hollered, his finger moving to fire.  
  
"NO!" Gene screamed. Hate, revenge, obsession, everything... it all surged through his mind. It was blinding him, pulsing through his blood... was he going to let McDougal have his way, his heart screamed? Was he going to let him win?!  
  
**Never.**  
  
But before McDougal could pull the trigger, there was a sudden blur of movement, and the gun was knocked from his hands. Stunned, his eyes followed the gun and watched it hit the ground near a bokutou lying in the grass nearby.   
  
"Suzuka!" He growled. "Do not interfere!"  
  
The assassin knelt on the ground at least fifty yards away, her arm still outstretched from when she had thrown her sword at the gun. She gave a small smile, and then collapsed in the same barely-conscious condition Jim was in.   
  
"Suzuka!" Aisha yelled. "You too?!" **The shocks really hurt 'em bad since they're not Ctarl-Ctarl...**  
  
McDougal wasted no time. He leapt to his feet and grabbed the gun, and this time, did not delay.  
  
He fired immediately.  
  
The blast rang out...  
  
And then there was silence.  
  
  
*********  
  
  
Everything moved in slow motion.  
  
The Scrappler shot out of the barrel of the rifle, shining even in the dark as it flew, its many askew blades gleaming dangerously as they spun.   
  
It's done, thought McDougal the instant he pulled the trigger. Melfina wouldn't escape; her eyes were wide with horror, and her entire body was completely paralyzed in her fear. Gene would pay dearly...  
  
It sliced through the air, growing nearer and nearer...  
  
But the instant it had been fired, it was out of McDougal's hands. His eyes widened as Starwind moved.  
  
Gene had only his right arm left... and he used it. Fist clenched, he reached over across his chest and swung back to the right at full speed, slamming his forearm against Melfina's body. She flew in the direction of the blow, horrified expression still frozen on her face... The metal rushed past her, its sound whispering in her ear...  
  
And then it struck.  
  
It pierced into Gene's flesh just below his left shoulder, striking his chest at a painful speed and ripping almost completely through to his back before stopping. An instant flood of pain seized him and his entire body jolted violently; his tightly clenched eyes were covered by the shadows of his blood red hair as his head snapped foreword with the seizure. Blood flew from the wound and Melfina's still-near face was splashed with some of it... drops trailed down her face and across her cheeks, almost as if they were tears...  
  
She slammed against the cold, hard ground...  
  
And time returned to normal.  
  
  
********  
  
  
Gene still stood, the jagged metal imbedded deeply inside of him.   
  
The others could only stare while the torrent of emotions rushed through their minds. "A... aniki!!" Jim managed to gasp from Aisha's arms, but his voice wasn't there. Aisha and Suzuka made no sound.  
  
McDougal stared at his shadowed figure, frozen and shocked. How could a man that wounded still move that fast? And why hadn't he fallen when he was hit?!  
  
**Can't fall...**  
  
A wave of pain hit Gene, and his eyes clenched even tighter.   
  
**Not yet...!* *  
  
A second wave, and a sound escaped his lips, not quite a gasp and not quite a yell.  
  
**One more thing...**  
  
Another, and he staggered backwards a little.   
  
**I've gotta do.**  
  
He braced his feet, steady. His eyes snapped open, and he focused on McDougal.  
  
**To play the game...**  
  
His hand became a blur.  
  
**...To win.**  
  
A shot echoed against the night.   
  
McDougal's eyes snapped open, and his body froze. His mouth opened slightly, a small, gagged sound escaping his tongue.  
  
"W... what...?!" he managed, and his free hand shot to his stomach, his other arm still aimed, still holding the rifle.  
  
"N... no... im... possible..."  
  
McDougal clutched tightly, but no matter how strongly he kept his grip, he was unable to hold in the gush of blood that flowed over his hand and poured to the ground. He was rushed with cold, then hot, then cold again, and his arm aiming the rifle slowly fell to his side... his hand did not let the weapon fall, though, refusing to loosen its grip on the hilt.   
  
He sank slowly to his knees, and the instant he hit the ground he bent foreword slightly in a slouch, eyes clenched in pain. He had been holding his breath, and he now gasped for air desperately.   
  
He saw something out of the corner of his eye, and his vision traveled to his brother's body, lying not too far away from him.  
  
"Harry... I'll be following you shortly, it seems..."  
  
After a moment, a smile formed on his lips, the result of irony realized.   
  
"So... I'm to die... at the outlaw's hands..."  
  
The world slowly faded into a blur, and as the blackness began to close in on his eyes, his voice whispered one final sound:  
  
"Gene... Starwind..."  
  
And then it was all black, and Ron McDougal became still forever... kneeling in the grass, with a gun clutched in one hand and his wound in the other.   
  
Gene allowed himself a smile before collapsing to the ground.  
  
****************  
  
...*takes a deep breath* That... was painful. Please, please, PLEASE review this chapter before going on to the next one... I spent a lot of time here, and I wanna know what you liked, what you didn't, if it sucked, rocked, whatever. PLEASE. And feel free to review the next chapter too...  
NOTE: this is *not* the Sailor Moon reality, and besides, I don't like the whole "the power of love is able to heal physical wounds" cliché at all. So don't even THINK about it.  
SECOND NOTE: I like SM, so don't hate me for not liking it, because it's not true.  
  
... *blinks* ...sales pitch time! OH NO, WILL GENE BE OKAY?! KEEP READING TO FIND OUT IF HE CAN SURVIVE THIS NEW BATTLE FOR SURVIVAL!!!  



	6. To Save Gene Starwind

"Gene!" Melfina gasped. Had that just... was McDougal really... did he just...  
  
"...No... Gene," she groaned, crawling over to him shakily, slowly.   
  
Jim didn't care now. He would force his damn body to react; he was getting over there.  
  
"ANIKI!!" He screamed as he pulled desperately out of Aisha's support, making her yelp "Jim!" in surprise. He fell immediately, landing hard on his chest and knocking the wind painfully out of him... but before Aisha could even try to help him he pushed himself up again.   
  
"ANIKI!!" He screamed again as he forced himself to a stand. He managed a few clumsy, painful steps before falling again. He cried out as his lungs forced his air out suddenly for a second time, but he grit his teeth and pushed again. He continued it... staggering desperately, slamming into the ground, and hurting more and more without caring... until he reached Gene.   
  
"Aniki! Aniki, say something!" he yelled. Gene heard his voice and opened his eyes, but had to wait some moments for them to fall into focus. He eventually saw Jim and Melfina above him.  
  
"Hey, Jim... you all right?"  
  
"Of course I am! Come on, get up, aniki! We've gotta get you help, right away!" Jim said, the urgency ringing in his voice. There was no way he would lose him...  
  
Gene groaned in agreement, then clenched his eyes and moaned in pain.  
  
"Gene!" Melfina gasped. "Hang in there!"  
  
"We need to get that thing out somehow!" another voice pointed out. Gene opened his eyes again and made out Aisha.  
  
"Yes, but... how do we do that?" Mel said, despondent.  
  
Aisha was silent a moment, then spoke again. "I dunno... I guess we could pull it out..."  
  
Gene winced at the thought. Jim shook his head.  
  
"We can't do that... it's a Scrappler blade. If we pulled it out, it would take too much with it and we'd never be able to patch him up again."  
  
Aisha paused, and then spoke again. "How about we push it all the way through him, then?"  
  
Now Gene made a "kghh" sound from the back of his throat. Jim merely sighed unhappily and shook his head again.  
  
"That would do just as much damage at this point. Honestly, I don't know how we can do this without making things worse. Aniki, hang in there... we'll think of something," he promised, his voice slightly cracking. There had to be some way...  
  
Suzuka, who had been slowly walking towards Gene ever since Ron McDougal's death, finally reached them. She frowned when she saw just how much blood Gene had spilled, not only from the Scrappler wound... in fact, since the blade was still in, it wasn't bleeding too terribly now. But Gene had been shot *many* times, and various blades had found their target as well.   
  
"Hey, Suzuka," Gene groaned out in a raspy voice upon catching sight of her. "Got any ideas?"  
  
She was silent for a while. Eventually, she replied, "I have none."  
  
At Suzuka's surrender, Melfina visibly sank in heart while Jim glared at the ground with fierce intensity. Gene closed his eyes softly and took a deep breath. He didn't want to die now...   
  
"What is WRONG with you?!"  
  
Everyone stared at Aisha. She had an angry, determined look on her face.  
  
"Come on, Gene Starwind! Snap out of it, right now! Take it like a man and rise to fight!"  
  
"Aisha!" Jim growled, furious. He'd had enough of her thoughtless comments at times like this. "Can't you shove your tactless personality somewhere else for one second?!"  
  
"NO!" she snapped back. "You listen to me! Gene," she said in a quieter but no less firm tone, turning her attention back to him. "It's true, you may come close to giving up every once and a while, but in the end you always come up with something!! You've saved your life and everyone else's every time, and all because you stood back up and fought! Don't give up now! You can beat this!"  
  
"I haven't... given up," Gene groaned. "It's... just that things... don't look too great... right now..."  
  
Aisha frowned, looking like she still had something to say, but instead she just sighed. "Aw, geez... if only you were an immortal Ctarl-Ctarl... we'd be able to rip that thing out any way we wanted and you'd heal fast enough to survive..."  
  
Suzuka blinked.  
  
"Well, he's not one, so we'll have to think of another way," Jim sighed.  
  
"Wait, wait," Suzuka said, almost breathless. "Repeat what you just said, Aisha."  
  
Aisha tilted an eyebrow at her. "Why? I said it's too bad he's not an immortal Ctarl-Ctarl..."  
  
"...because then we could take the Scrappler out and he'd heal fast enough to survive," Suzuka finished for her.  
  
"Right. But like Jim said he isn't, so it doesn't matter!" Aisha said, annoyed.  
  
"Suzuka," Jim said, eyeing her. "Do you have an idea?"   
  
Everyone's eyes fell on her, and Gene rolled his head over slowly to watch her expression. Suzuka was silent for a moment, thinking it through... but then she smiled slightly.   
  
**We can pull it off,** she thought, a spark of hope lighting up her face.  
  
"It seems I've thought of something," Suzuka told them.  
  
*************  
  
What's Suzuka thinking of now... and will it work? Let's just say I think Gene's gonna need something to bite down on. You'd better get ready! (The tranquilizer, that is)  



	7. Two Fights

"Which battle is worse: The one against the body, or the one against the mind? One can judge by the outcome of loss, I suppose. If you lose against pain, you pass out. If you lose against your own wits, you pass out, and you never really wake up again."  
--Chloe Roberts  
  
*****************  
  
**No, I am NOT dead. It just took me a while to get around a whole bunch of sucky things happening in my life, AKA MID-SEMESTER EXAMS _; . Luckily I've been driven so insane by studying that I've retreated into my little fanfiction bubble. Or rather, my Angst-muse and Bloodmuse have escaped from their restraints and temporarily taken over the two Schoolmuses.  
  
Okay, Just to be fair and warn you, not only were parts of this written at different times (therefore transition might sound funny and some paragraphs might sound just plain different than others), but I was listening to various scary Yu Yu Hakusho music most of the first-half writing, such as "Nightmare" and "Dark Side Stories." You have NO idea how drastically music affects me when I write while listening to it; in fact, it actually affects me more than it does Adakie, and if you're a fan of hers you'll be afraid... Just check out her story Botou Hoshi *insert shameless promo to return the favor here, not that she needs it ^_~* and you'll see what I mean.   
So be prepared, cuz it's gonna get twisted... More so than usual. o_O**  
  
Gene's heart skipped a beat quite literally, and he almost choked hiding it from the others. A plan? So he had a chance! And of all people to be his only hope, it was Twilight Suzuka, the woman self-sworn to kill him. Somewhere deep inside him, he was sure he found that funny... But he'd bring it up later.  
  
"You have?! Then spit it out, Suzuka!! Come on, we don't have any time to lose!!" Jim hollered, almost leaping to his feet but instead keeping a firm yet gentle grip on Gene's blood-soaked hand. He still hadn't noticed his gloves now matched Gene's own in color.  
  
Suzuka's eyes locked with Jim's. "I suggest we get Gene back to the ship. I'll explain on the way."  
  
"The ship..." Jim's head turned to the left, and his eyes squinted in the darkness to see the pale, dark outline of the Outlaw Star about a mile from where they stood.   
  
"But... how do we get him there?"  
  
"I'll carry him," Aisha offered as she walked towards him.  
  
Jim turned to eye Aisha as she approached; he didn't trust her with anything breakable whatsoever, let alone the closest person in his life while he held on by a thread. But when he saw her he started; instead of her usual light air, Aisha walked with a steady focused tread, and she kneeled down wordlessly to carefully gather the blood-soaked figure in her arms.   
  
After she had completely risen with Gene's body held securely by her strength, her eyes suddenly moved to meet Jim's own. In an instant, everything flowed from green to blue. She was serious. She wouldn't hurt Gene in any way that wasn't necessary, no matter what happened. She cared about this. Trust her. Leave this in her hands. She wouldn't let him or anyone else down. She promised.  
  
After she had said this better than any words could have done, any seriousness about her was quickly drowned in a wave of her classic confidence.   
  
"Just leave it to me!" Aisha said, winking at him with a half-smile. "I can't let him die now. Not with the Galactic Leyline still out there and this baka as my only lead!"  
  
Jim stared at her for a second, then smiled. "All right, Aisha. Just don't drop him, okay?"  
  
"DROP him?! Ugh... can't you give me more credit than that?!" Aisha groaned, and she almost spun to whack Jim upside his head but thought better of it, seeing as though she had a dying man in her hands.  
  
Jim sighed, still smiling, but it faded. "All right... let's go."  
  
Aisha nodded, said "I'll go on ahead, the faster and steadier this is done the better," and then took off towards the XGP.  
  
****************  
  
The grass blurred into a simple blanket of dark green under Gene's vision as he felt the breeze of the night air against his body. Actually, he could barely see anything clearly, and that bothered him; it meant either Aisha was going dangerously fast, or he was going to pass out soon.  
  
He found himself believing both, but he didn't blame Aisha for the first. He must look that terrible; in fact, there was no question about it.   
  
He was shot in his legs God knew how many times, and each wound irradiated a terrible throb with each seizure of pain as his flesh tightened and relaxed around the bitterly cold bullets imbedded deeply inside of him. On top of that, he had been stabbed about three times, grazed five, and although the blade-wounds did not throb as the freezing bullets did, they perpetually burned with a sting-like poison against his muscle. His world was glazed red in their pain alone...   
  
So why the hell did anyone find it necessary to invent something like a Scrappler? he thought, in awe of the prisoners of war who had to face its true talents before it was forbidden. He wouldn't be able to watch those torture scenes in movies ever again; he had never, EVER, felt anything nearly as painful in his entire life. It was the blade and bullet combined; the metal was ice-cold against his burning blood, and it sent shivers up and down his spine as it stung his body painfully with its chill. At the same time, waves upon waves of searing agony pulsated from the wound, his flesh aflame as seemingly billions of poisonous needles rained into it all at the same time. Hot and cold combined throbbed endlessly in time with the beating of his heart; and with each pulse his flesh constricted around the blades, sending even more powerful waves of fire into his entire being, invading his mind and heating the back of his eyes, which he rolled upward as they fluttered in the struggle to stay conscious.  
  
He'd never look at an eggbeater the same way again.  
  
A panic shot through him; if he laughed because of that it may very well kill him, and laughing to death would make him feel awfully stupid talking about it in the afterlife.  
  
Luckily, he didn't have to struggle too badly with keeping himself under control, since the wind against his body died down as Aisha slowed her speed at a trained, steady pace. Eventually, they slowed perfectly to a stop in front of the door that led into the Outlaw Star; Aisha was pleased she had timed it just so they didn't have to give at all when they stopped.   
  
"Gene, you still with me?"   
  
She had asked this every fifteen seconds on the way, building up to 17 times already. Gene hadn't noticed how many times she had repeated herself though, since each time he heard her voice he was barely pulled back into reality.  
  
"Nnh," was the reply. It wasn't as strong as the other 17, and that alarmed her.  
  
"Well, that wasn't very enthusiastic. You better not speak anymore, all right? Gilliam!" Aisha shouted. "Let us in, quick! The others are coming soon."  
  
"Yes, Aisha," was the reply. The heavy metal door slid to the side, and a small metal cylinder with eyeballs was revealed on the other side of it. If any shred of the possibility of the thought that an AI unit could express emotion existed, then this one showed anxiety.  
  
"I've been worried," the pink robot said as he followed her down his ramp. "Is Gene all right? What happened?"  
  
"Everything that could possibly wound a human being, that's what happened. ...No, wait," she said suddenly as she paused in the hallway. "That missile didn't hit him."  
  
"Goodness, what happened to the McDougal brothers?"  
  
"They're dead. They're not a problem anymore."  
  
A pause. "I see. And from the look of the captain, they went kicking on their way down."  
  
Aisha made an annoyed face. "This is no time to be tactless! If I've held back, so can you! Gene'll follow 'em if you don't hurry up and tell me what to do with him until the others get back."   
  
"That won't be necessary," Gilliam said as he swiveled to meet the rest of the group as they came running up the hall. "They're already here."  
  
"Hey! That was fast," Aisha assessed. "Over a mile."  
  
"Let's get him to the bed," Gilliam said. "Please follow me." He began to lead the way to the infirmary, but Suzuka's near-breathless words cut him off.  
  
"No. We're going to the bridge."  
  
"What? The bridge?" Aisha repeated, tilting her head.  
  
"Yes," she replied, and turned her head to look at Melfina. "And we need to hurry."   
  
Aisha tilted an eyebrow, but quickly spun on her heel without question and moved in the opposite direction, Jim following closely and breathlessly from the run. Suzuka remained to gaze at Melfina for just the right amount of time, and Melfina understood.  
  
"But... I can only..." she stammered.  
  
"It'll be enough. I'll explain everything at the bridge," Suzuka said, and took Melfina's arm on her way past her, as she had frozen.  
  
***  
  
"All right, what are we doing?" Jim asked as everyone filed into the room alongside the captain's seat.   
  
"We're going to save Gene," Suzuka replied simply.  
  
"I know that, but..."  
  
"Specifically, we're going to take out the Scrappler and, as quickly as possible, Melfina is going to heal Gene to the highest of her power inside the ship."  
  
"Wh... take out the Scrappler?! But how are we supposed to do that?!" Aisha nearly yelled, looking down at the metal sticking out of Gene's chest. "I thought you said..."  
  
"I was thinking you would pull it out as quickly as you could," Suzuka explained. "We need that strength. Once it's out, it's a race for time. Melfina is to heal him past the point of mortal danger, and then he can recover from there."  
  
Jim looked at Gene's clenched eyes as he spoke. "You don't think he'll die when we pull it out?"  
  
Suzuka blinked and looked at Jim, whose eyes didn't stray from Gene. "It's the only chance he has... to get it out and heal quickly enough to live. There's always a risk. But if you want my opinion..." Jim looked up at her, and she looked at Gene. "No, I don't. I think he can survive."  
  
She then looked at Aisha. "As long as it's fast enough. How quickly do you think you can pull it out? We don't want the blades ripping anything extra away; they need to cut through cleanly and take what they must."  
  
Aisha looked down at the wound, noting the length of the rod she would grip, thankful a smooth, long cylinder was needed to slide inside the barrel of the gun.  
  
"It seems long enough to get a good grip... his body's tightened around it already, and some of the blood has dried. I'm pretty sure I can pull it out fast enough anyway, but..."  
  
Gene slowly opened his eyes, in time enough to meet Aisha's. "It's going to hurt real bad, Gene Starwind. Odds are it'll tear a while before it gives way and fires out, and I'll probably recoil from it. That's how deep in it is. You might pass out.  
  
You wanna do this?"  
  
It was a question spoken simply. But all eyes turned to fill his fading ones when he was silent at the question.  
  
Did he?   
  
He closed his eyes. He couldn't imagine hurting more than this, but apparently that next level existed, and the only way out of this was to go straight through it. But was it necessary? What did he have to achieve? He'd already found his enemy, and killed him... he'd found a girl, or something close enough to fool his heart at least. And he really had no plan, no great future layout for himself...   
  
Hadn't he, ever since his father died, been walking on a thin tightrope his entire life, where only one tempting tilt to either side would end it all? Hadn't he, soon after he had been rescued from drifting in space after that attack, had his stomach pumped twice? And after he had made it out on his own, how many times had he gone to bed gazing at his blade for a bit too long... or later, running his coarse fingers along the cool barrel of the pistol he always kept near him? How many times had he wondered, "How much longer will I just keep on going, just moving around in his backwater planet, playing out this life that's dead?" Wasn't this his chance to pull the curtain?  
  
Apparently, he had been thinking about his question too long.   
  
"...Gene?"  
  
He opened his eyes. He looked at the voice, Melfina, who was near tears. It was as if she was reading his thoughts.  
  
"D... don't give up now, Gene..."  
  
He blinked. Oh yeah. She knows about all this, since the last time she helped me out... she's the only one who does... hell, not even Jim...  
  
He rolled his eyes over to see his partner. Hawking's brilliant blue eyes, showing age much too old for him, locked with is own. What he saw was yet another wave of shock.  
  
Jim looked dead worried. Confused, too; his aniki, when Aisha asked "You wanna do this?" was supposed to immediately say "What're we waiting for, a funeral?!" and keep fighting to the end like he always did. He wasn't actually supposed to THINK about it. Jim knew him so well, and the instant he didn't reply, he knew something was wrong.  
  
Wrong, eh? Was it wrong for him to die? Wait, let's think about this. Now that he DID think about it, he had to admit his life had changed since before, and he had no immediate desire to end it. He had let go of his past; Hilda had literally forced him to. He had killed his most hated enemy; McDougal wouldn't haunt his dreams ever again.   
  
He had things to live for, too. He had found someone to share his heart with; he needed to actually do so. And he still needed a dream to chase... if someone tattooed it up and down his other arm and branded it on his forehead to boot, the Galactic Leyline couldn't have been more obvious. He had friends, and a little brother to take care of, right?   
To hell with suicide, because that's what stopping now was. And to hell with giving up.   
  
*Screw this. I ain't dying now.*  
  
"I'm ready. Let's go. No mercy."  
  
The air changed, and Aisha lowered him down to his feet, while Suzuka moved to hold him in her place. She moved into position in front of him, and after getting her desired angle, Aisha stared right into Gene's eyes, and the determination from both beings melted together into a powerful force, fed by the life of the ones around them as well. She nodded.  
  
"Yosh'. Remember, you said no mercy."  
  
Gene nodded, grit his teeth, and braced himself.  
  
***********************************  
  
Hmm... _ Didn't edit the second half at all. Well, tell me what sucked about it and what didn't. The reason it's so weird? All my muses have cordially restrained their powers by caging themselves in anti-spirit wards, all but my two Schoolmuses. This is a good thing; this means I might pass my exams. This chapter was a freak muse-escape incident; two to be exact, my Detmuse (Detail Muse, named Breathless) and my Angst-muse (No-name... that's her name -_-; ). Geez, when those two work together... luckily they have restrained themselves again, so my poor overworked Schoolmuses can get back to work (Einstein and Tayer).  
  
ANYWAY, next chapter is gonna be yet another trial for everybody. There's another attack going on! Pirates?! How did they know Gene would be down!? Get ready for a drastic slide, from suicide angst to physical TORTURE! How's a wounded outlaw expected to fight after something like makeshift Scrappler surgery?! You'd better get ready for the RETURN OF MY MUSES!!   
  
PS: Especially my Bloodmuse. Sanji... That thing is brewing in its cage. I think it's gonna take over as soon as it's let out... *Sanji growls at her hungrily, thinking: Thursday afternoon. You're aaallllllll mine, Thursday afternoon...* iiieeeee...  



	8. Three Efforts: Force, Strength, and Devo...

  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
AUTHOR NOTE:   
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
AAAAUUUUUUGGGHHH, I give up, I give up!! I'm just gonna post what I have so far!!  
  
Okay, here's what happened (and why the hell this took so long). My blurb for the last chapter had the promise of pirates in it, because with this fic, I do what I do for no other fic: plan ahead. **Earth hurtles into the sun** Anyway, I kept writing and writing to try and get to this planned-out pirate cliffhanger o' mine, but the chapter kept getting longer and longer, and the pirates just kept getting farther and farther away.  
  
So, I have decided to temporarily stall my Evil Plot (tm), which was to leave you all at terrible cliffhangers each time I ended a chapter, so you'd actually care about reading the next chapter.   
  
**Everyone points and laughs at her for breaking her own rant. Miko's voice is heard in the background: "Why do the bad guys always reveal their evil plots? Are they stupid or WHAT?!"**  
  
Apparently, the answer is no, they just want to share their genius with the little people. )  
  
ANYWAY, I have this nasty habit of going into these long, angsty... things. If you haven't noticed already, they take up anywhere from one paragraph to one whole friggin' chapter... but they usually get completely deleted in the end. The difference this time is, I actually like most of the stuff I've done here... so I'm keeping it in.   
  
Hell, my fic, my rules. *throws head back and laughs* HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!   
  
So, uh, these next parts start off with a torture festival, and then fall into pure, raw, angst. In all forms possible, baby. Trust me, we'll go back to the format I was using before (I call it "episode format," It's basically a detailed episode writeout.). But for now, it's an angst format.  
  
For half of you, this is a treat. For the other half, this is an "Uh oh. Better put up with this and review so she hurries and changes back."  
  
Oh yeah, REVIEW to tell me whether I suck or not for changing the format. I mean, I'm going back to episode format either way, but I wanna see if the angst format appeals at all.  
  
Sanji and No-name sure had a field day with this... *** ^_^v ^_^v ***  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
CHAPTER EIGHT  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Aisha tightened her grip and pulled.  
  
Gene's scream was immediate. It resonated against the walls of the ship and all but drowned out the thick, sucking sound of his sodden flesh as it began to tear away. He convulsed under Suzuka's hold, and she tightened her grip to hold his thrashing body.   
  
"Hang in there!" Suzuka hollered over his scream. Melfina gave a small noise that sounded like an escaped convict from an entire prison of barred-up feelings, and Jim reached up to clutch Melfina's shaking hand. It was to comfort himself more than she, though; watching this, seeing Gene in such pain, hurt him far beyond any electric shock Ron McDougal could inflict. He refused to look away, though. He would never dishonor Gene's bravery like that. He kept his eyes open, their gray-blue a storm of intense, chaotic emotion.  
  
Aisha growled, and her arms shook in their strain. There was no way in heaven this was beyond her strength... but to focus and control it for a delicate procedure such as this took extreme effort, and it sapped her energy immensely. Not only that, but her earlier glance, the one that had told her that the cone section of the Scrappler was conveniently smooth and easy to grip against the jagged metal head of the weapon, had turned out to be a terrible lie; she now knew how truly rough the surface of the cone was, because she could feel the sharp points of the unpolished metal sticking holes through her palms and fingers as her grip intensified. She did her best to ignore the pain, and with Gene's screams in her ears, she succeeded; the holes in her hands were virtually a good thing, since they prevented her hands from slipping.  
  
Gene flung his head back in pain, screaming all the way, and the back of his skull slammed into Suzuka's face. She groaned and her ears rang, but her arms only tightened around his in a painful but necessary lock.   
  
The Scrappler began to give. Aisha knew it would only be a matter of centimeters before it gave out and flew away completely, so she prepared for a final, full-strength effort. She clutched the bar tighter to make the directional control easier, digging the support holes deeper as blood gushed from her palms and dripped down the handle. She gave it no heed; after all, it was nothing compared to what would come out of Gene in a few seconds. She clenched her eyes and gave it all her strength.  
  
After that much extreme pressure, the Scrappler gave instantly.   
  
Aisha knew it was out for three reasons. One, Gene's scream cut off with a choke, and nothing but silence followed.  
  
Two, her body stumbled backwards and into the nearby wall with a definitive thud, and as the strain in her muscles slowly relaxed, she became painfully aware of the dull stinging in her hands.  
  
Three, blood was the last thing she saw before she was blinded. It had gushed from the newly-opened wound, covered her arms, and splashed into her eyes.  
  
"Gene!/Aniki!" Jim and Melfina yelled simultaneously to break the silence, and they leapt foreword to him. Aisha gasped for breath as she sank to the ground against the wall, the almost unbearable smell of newly-broken human flesh dominating her keen senses; she almost didn't hear the yelling of the others as they rushed to Gene's collapsed side, and she barely noticed the Gilliam unit that had dropped down beside her to ask if she was all right. She blinked furiously, but somehow she couldn't clear her eyes of the deep red shade covering them. If anything, she made it a little translucent, but still all she could see were outlines, shadows. She prayed she could wash it out later. If there was one thing she did not wish to be for the rest of her life, it was blind.  
  
But another thought dazed her. If this was the damage with a Ctarl-Ctarl's strength... if it was this bad when pulled out that fast...  
  
How on earth could this be the minimum damage?!  
  
***********  
  
"Are you all right?" Suzuka asked Aisha quickly, and at her hasty nod Suzuka put worry over the Ctarl-Ctarl out of her mind and fully focused on Gene. She felt the heat of his blood soaking her sleeve and knew they had to act fast, so she immediately released Gene to gingerly pass him to Melfina. They were already standing right over the entrance to her chamber to minimize the needed movement, and she was grateful she thought of that beforehand.  
  
"Careful with him," she said as she helped move Gene into a safe position around Melfina, who nodded. She looked very somber, not unlike Suzuka's own face, and that gave her extra hope; no panic meant steadfast determination, which was the only thing needed at this point. But suddenly, Melfina turned her head, looked right into her eyes... and changed expression. For an instant, she seemed to stand in awe of Suzuka... in awe of her strength in such a terrifying situation.   
  
"Good luck," Suzuka offered, bewildered... but she remained calm-sounding, collected-looking. Melfina nodded, determined once again, and the moment passed for her... Suzuka, however, continued to muse on it, asking herself when the last time she showed her emotion was, being unable to find an answer. In a final adjustment, she pressed her hand gently against Gene's forehead to brace his neck upwards, and she saw his face for the first time since the Scrappler had been pulled out.   
  
Her eyes widened.  
  
Then, as if some god had pressed the fast-foreword button, Gene and Melfina suddenly lowered into the mystery of the android's world, and the chamber slammed shut with a bang that made Suzuka jump what felt to her a mile high. The sudden movement passed, and she stared at the seal as she heard the process beginning... stared at it, since it was a solid thing to look at in this blur of sudden emotion.  
  
She couldn't remember the last time she had felt this kind of heat in her soul...  
  
But when she saw Gene's face... that strong face with the amazing eyes usually so full of emotion, be it good, bad or boredom... when she saw him in complete weakness so close to death, her throat swelled inside of her, and she felt the heat of what would have been tears... long ago.   
  
She didn't know whether to be grateful or sad for her inability to remember how to cry. One thing was certain: her current stoic face was a flaming lie.  
  
She prayed that Melfina's determination would be enough. She prayed for Gene's heart to keep beating, she prayed for his full recovery, she prayed for his happiness. She prayed with all her soul, and had been praying since the instant her fingers left him.  
  
She prayed. And willed all of that strength she was supposed to have to Melfina.  
  
*************  
  
Melfina worked calmly, silently, and efficiently.  
  
Upon seeing Gene on the threshold of death, Melfina had felt nothing, gone blank. And after nothing, came anguish... after anguish came pain. But that was quickly overridden with something stronger. Something she had never felt so strongly before.  
  
It wasn't love. Love was too mixed, too complex, to be focused for strength in a way that wasn't risky. It could burn her heart with complete passion one second, then fill her with utter helplessness the next... love, in fact, was the very cause of the nothing, the anguish, and the pain that came before. It was in act the whole time, even before Gene was hurt, weakening and strengthening her as she lived and breathed. If she relied on love, and if things didn't go exactly like they did in the storybooks, she would end up powerless against its varying strength, and Gene would be destroyed by her very love for him.  
  
It was devotion. With her love, in the mix of it all, came the pure feeling of devotion. It came out with all the power and vengeance of the love that created it, and it would not let any other emotion come anywhere close to leveling with it. For devotion, once in its raw form, becomes a type of obsession. And pure obsession is one of the strongest, most dominating forces in existence.*  
  
She had told Gene she would never leave him. She wouldn't leave him now.  
  
With patience beyond what any human could achieve, she continued to piece him back together. She had already removed all the bullets, reduced the deep holes they had made to surface wounds, healed to some extent the broken arm, and had even healed completely most of the stab-wounds.   
  
"Stay with me, Gene," she said to him calmly. Things were going smoothly.  
  
But suddenly, she reached her limit. And sadly, her earlier, private guesstimate of just how much she would be able to heal was correct; although all other wounds were now either completely healed or on their road to recovery, the Scrappler wound remained gaping and mortally dangerous. She had managed to repair the shattered bone and most the ligaments, but as for the muscle...  
  
She knew this would happen, and she had a plan. She hadn't wanted to do it, but it was what needed to be done.  
  
To save the man she loved.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Okay, that was fluffy, only... uh... not. ^_^;; Sorry, I just think the power of love is the ultimate cheat in certain fanfiction realms. Of course in others it's mandatory and I forgive it; examples are Sailor Moon, Fushigi Yuugi, and Magic Knight Rayearth (DUH).   
  
Jim teenyboppers have permission not to review this chapter and run, do not walk, to the next chapter... Providing you review that one, of course. ^_~.   
  
Everyone else: what'd you think of the part where Aisha finally pulled that damn little f---er out? Eh? I had a generally fun time with that one. ) Tellmetellmetellme, onegai!!  
  
* about obsession: Don't we all know it! ^_^  



	9. Jim Hawking's Heart

  
The only sound outside the chamber, once it had sealed the others so completely away from Gene and Melfina, was the sound of Jim Hawking's breathing. At least, that's all he heard as he stood, silent and unmoving with an image of Gene burning its colors into his mind.   
  
He was programmed to examine first, let the heart speak later... when he had seen the Scrappler pulled out, he had first seen the black-red flesh of the gaping wound and assessed it. If it were to heal, it would leave a horrendous scar, and the bones, muscles, and ligaments which had been mutilated would have to be surgically repaired with bio-engineering if Melfina couldn't help. He had then focused on blood loss; it welled up inside the deep hole of the wound, overflowed, and poured out in thick layers of elegant, liquid satin, which soaked into Gene's chest and stomach and fell to the floor. That kind of blood loss percentage meant Gene wouldn't be able to sit up without passing out for at least a week...  
  
But as Jim had looked over Gene's pale and slack form, and after he had filed all this medical, technical information in his mind, his heart, finally claiming its turn, had gone mad with emotion. He had stood at his side, his aniki's side, and forced himself to remain silent as Suzuka passed Gene to Mel, a look of pain mixed with dominating, wretched horror on his face.   
  
He had wished nothing more than to fling his arms around Gene, to hold him close, to cry out to him and tell him it would turn out all right, to give his life to him if that was what it took. To save him, protect him from anything that would ever hurt him, was all his heart desired. He wanted that. So badly...   
  
But he knew to hold him would mean his death. So he stood by, his heart crying out in anguish, his mind barring his emotions. But finally one desperate request got through...  
  
"Hang in there, Aniki," Jim had managed to cough out. It was barely a whisper... but Gene gave a soft groan in response, startling them all; it was the only sound he'd made since the Scrappler had been pulled.   
  
Jim was disgusted and thrilled at the same time; that sound probably took effort, and could have drained some needed strength, and it was his fault!... but Gene had heard him, he *could* respond, and that filled him with hope.  
  
Why couldn't he listen to his heart all the time? He now thought. Why couldn't he leap foreword, be held back by Aisha or Suzuka, and scream with all the pain he held barred up inside? Why couldn't he let it out... cry and yell and groan and beg to whatever God would listen to save this man that was his aniki, his everything! This man who took him in, cared about him, brought him into a better life than the hell he had been living! He loved Gene so much. Did the ability to keep everything in mean he didn't love him as strongly as he thought?  
  
This question burned so painfully into him he didn't feel Suzuka's gaze on him. No. That couldn't be. Where was the pain coming from, then? Besides, he reminded himself, he couldn't be more grateful for the control. If he didn't have control over his emotions, everything would fall apart for him, and for the others. He wasn't a child, despite his age, and to listen to his heart before his mind was too dangerous for a man like him. He was the one who always had the answer. Always had everything under control.  
  
As Melfina lowered into the chamber, holding Gene close to her, Jim had felt the heat of tears rising in his face. Yet the tears refused to fall.   
  
So many things screaming through his heart. Such complete emptiness at the same time.   
  
"Don't die," he had said, just before the door slammed shut, blocking his eyes and jump-starting his nervous system. For some reason, when the seal locked, he felt as if someone had punched him in the stomach.   
  
He now clenched his eyes, trying to block any possible tears away; he needed to concentrate now, in case anything went wrong and he was needed. He would be needed...  
  
He felt a hand on his shoulder. Startled, he looked up to see Suzuka's eyes looking into his.   
  
"Jim."  
  
He breathed in, and let out a choked sigh. He gave a nod, and moved out from under her touch to go to his console.  
  
"Let's get ready. We need to be on standby in case something goes wrong and..."  
  
"You don't have to be strong all the time, Jim."  
  
He stopped dead. He felt the heat again, so he looked to Suzuka in a begging, wishing look, like she had an answer... only to meet with her eyes and feel even more vulnerable under her gaze. She never cried... why couldn't he be like her?  
  
"Jim. Don't do that."  
  
He blinked. "Do what?"  
  
She sighed. "I have less strength than you think," she said in a sort of tired, despondent voice... nothing like her usual tone. "I don't cry, because I have forgotten how. I'm sure I would shed at least one tear for Gene, in hope, if I could."  
  
He stared at her, bewildered. She smiled, a small, nice smile.  
  
"But you still remember how, don't you, Jim?" she whispered.   
  
He gave a sort of whimper, but swallowed it. "B... but I..."  
  
He felt his wall begin to crumble. It would take only one more blow.  
  
Then Suzuka knelt down and gently wrapped her clean arm around him in a comforting embrace, her hand pressing him close.   
  
Jim was shocked; was this Suzuka? His eyes showed his amazement as they stared widely into nothing at all. But as she held him, he remembered suddenly the last time he was held like this. The way Gene hugged him, that one time after his surgery...   
  
He remembered as Suzuka patiently held him. It was during a bout between Gene and some forgotten bounty prospect; a rogue dagger had hit Jim in the chest, and landed him in intensive care. Jim's heart had stopped during surgery, and they thought he was a lost cause after the fourth or so shock... but the doctor, refusing to give up, managed to save him. He emerged, beaming with relief, to tell Gene that Jim would be just fine... but he came to a man who had thought his partner was dead for twenty eternal minutes. Gene had been told Jim had died on the table.  
  
When Jim woke up on the starchy hospital bed... he could still remember the way the wallpaper, a faded yellow with white flower-baskets scattered all over it, looked against Gene's wrecked, tear-streaked face... the instant he opened his eyes, Gene had groaned in relief and hugged him close in a tight, desperate embrace. It was as if he believed that if he let go, he'd lose him again.   
  
Gene had never hugged him before, and hadn't since. Maybe it was because he knew that if he hugged him again, he'd remember that moment, just as Jim did now. And he knew he'd remember along with it the roller coaster of wild agony and blessed happiness he had ridden that day, just like Jim felt everything now. ...And he knew that if it all came back, all at once... it would probably be too much for him to control, and he'd be powerless to stop the tears.  
  
... Just as Jim was now.   
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Okay, that Jim chapter was fluffy. It wasn't romance, but yet I still managed to fluff it. In fact, that was the most fluffiest fluff I've ever fluffed. (Yet...) Well, next section-chapter-thing is gonna be the melt-over chapter, going from angst back to episode (You'll notice chapter 7 was the opposite melt-over), so stick around, because if all this angst is wearing you out it's only toning down from here.  
  
Remember to review to tell me if you loved all that angst, or loved some of it, or want me to burn in hell for doing that to you! If you don't tell me what you like, then I can never know!! But remember, intelligent criticism only! Dumbass flames will be laughed at!! ^_^  



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